Posted by: Tan Light - Digital Sales and Marketing Coordinator

This past weekend Swedish author Henning Mankell made a rare Canadian appearance at the Toronto Reference Library’s Bram and Bluma Appel Salon. There were nearly 400 people in attendance, which was pretty amazing considering the beautiful weather. I think Mankell’s draw is a testament to his amazing storytelling.

After an introduction by the CBC’s Michael Enright, Henning Mankell took the stage for a rather honest interview in which he shared with us many stories from his life, including his personal philosophy that he should do two things everyday - learn something new, and have a good laugh.

Here are some of the things I learned that day:

1) Mankell has been involved with the Memory Book Project in Uganda.

For him, this project is especially important due to the extremely high death rate in Africa. Malaria and AIDS kill thousands annually and many children never know their parents. However, illiteracy is just as rampant, making the creation of a memory book difficult.
He told us a heartbreaking story about a young girl who had hovered on the periphery of the group Mankell was working with. Eventually, she came closer and held out her memory book for him to see. Inside was a blue butterfly. “My mother liked blue butterflies.” She told him. That was her only connection to her mother. Mankell said it was the best book he had ever read.

2) Kennedy’s Brain has been filmed and will be released in Europe this Spring.
Click here to watch the trailer.

3) Mankell is working on a new Wallander novel after almost 10 years! It will be the last one in the Wallander series. We should see it next year in Canada.

4) Mankell writes every day. Once, while in Stockholm, he had to stay in a place with no lights or furniture. To get in his daily writing, he opened the oven, turned on the oven light, and set up his typewriter. That is dedication!

5) He also reads 2-3 books per week.

Want to watch the interview? The Toronto Public Library will post the interview here next week.

Posted by: Beth Powning - author of The Sea Captain's Wife

On the evening of January 15, 2010, the Sussex Royal Legion in Sussex, New Brunswick, was transformed into an 1860s sailing ship for the launching of my new novel, The Sea Captain’s Wife.

Angelika Glover, my editor at Knopf Canada, came from Toronto. I had obtained a costume for her from Kings Landing Historical Settlement. We helped each other into vast crinolines, long dresses, detachable sleeves. In our 1870s house, I was struck by the sight of Angelika as she stood in the hallway adjusting her collar in the mirror. And then again as I saw her coming through the back door into the winter dusk, and as she and I rustled our long skirts over the snow in the deep country quiet. This is what literature is about, I thought; the thrill of entering another time, another world.

Perhaps it was this feeling that gripped every visitor to the Legion that night. People were greeted by high school students in costume, a six-foot-tall lighthouse, the sound of a fog horn and a cloud of fog. The room’s lighting was low, with pools of light illuminating photos and paintings of nineteenth century sailing ships and shipyards, and tables covered with objects gleaned from attics, or on loan from museums: ship’s logs, sextants, tools, even a captain’s sea chest. The Sea Captain’s Wife spilled from a leather trunk on the Indigo table; the manager and her assistant had travelled an hour from Saint John. There was the swish of long skirts, the half-giddy pleasure of women dressed in period costume. One woman wore a wedding dress from the 1840s. My son was resplendent in a brown beaver top hat and silk ruffled vest. A pirate appeared wearing a hoop earring and eye patch. The room smelled of chowder that simmered on the kitchen’s big stoves, attended by many volunteer cooks. Hundreds of biscuits were baked. A sea shanty group, “Before the Mast,” sat in a boat at the front of the room next to the stage - and the stage itself was a ship’s prow, with a life-sized figurehead made for the occasion, a huge canvas jib hung from a spar, and a ship’s wheel.

At seven o’clock, people began pouring in. They came and came. People reported that three adjacent parking lots were filled and that a line stretched far down the snowy sidewalk. The sea shanty group began to sing as the chairs filled and people jostled for space along walls. My neighbour and friend Kevin, dressed in a period captain’s outfit, was the emcee. I was introduced by the event’s organizer, Patricia, the high school librarian who had worked tirelessly, serving as the hub of a wheel of about 25 volunteers. As I read, I experienced the palpable energy of 500 utterly silent people. Afterwards, I thanked people in the crowd who had helped with the book in diverse ways: the veterinarian who told me how horses were disposed of in the 1860s, the doctor who had researched nineteenth century medicine. The sea shanty group sang again. People milled about, chatting with the women who had made the chowder, swapping yarns at the artifact tables, buying beer at the Legion bar, meeting old friends.

And they waited patiently in line to buy books. I signed and signed, for two hours. One man said to me, “I heard about this event on CBC. I told my wife we were going to go to it. ‘Harry, you don’t read!’ she said. ‘I’m going to read THIS book, I told her.’” To my astonishment, a couple told me they had come from Nova Scotia. And others from Fredericton, Saint John, Sackville.

It was a success beyond the wildest expectations of SLICE, Sussex Literary Initiatives and Cultural Events. We will all be talking about it in years to come, a warm, vibrant outpouring of community pride and support - just as we still tell tales of the Age of Sail.

Posted by: Adria Iwasutiak - Senior Publicist

Last week I had the special privilege of attending a “sneak peak” screening party in honour of the television adaptation of Bloodletting & Miraculous Cures by Vincent Lam. The event was hosted at Toronto East General Hospital, where Dr. Lam works in the ER, making the entire evening a unique and memorable experience! We started off in the TEGH’s new Emergency Ward, which has not yet been used by patients. The crowd attire ran the gamut from suits to scrubs, as Dr. Lam’s colleagues, friends, booksellers, media, hospital board members and donors enjoyed a tour of the new space with wine in hand. After a warm welcome from Dr. Lam (at the hospital they call him Vince!) we headed upstairs to the E2 Lecture Hall, a lovely space for a screening.

The Neal Brothers provided us with delicious popcorn and seventy-five of us laughed, gasped and sat on the edges of our seats as the first in the HBO Canada original eight-part series played. Shawn Ashmore, perhaps better known to most of us as Ice Man from X-Men, was outstanding as Fitz and drew all of us in as the flashbacks to his romantic affair with Ming and the love triangle with Chen unfolded. Everyone had their copies of Bloodletting and Miraculous Cures signed by Vincent Lam at the end of the night, and many shared how eager they are to revisit this outstanding collection of stories and share with new readers!

Bloodletting and Miraculous Cures airs on HBO Canada Sunday nights at 8 pm. Visit www.bloodletting.tv for episode guides, bonus features and more.

Posted by: Jennifer Herman - National Accounts Marketing Manager, Random House of Canada

In my work in national accounts marketing, I help organize and attend tons of author events - especially at this time of year. I was thrilled to finally meet tennis great Andre Agassi who was in town last week promoting his new book Open. I have been raving about him since the summer, and now you can see what I was prattling on about.

Also a lot of fun to meet, and proudly Canadian, was Paul Shaffer who was in Toronto to promote his book We’ll be Here for the Rest of Our Lives. I loved all the musical connections this man possesses and he shared his newfound knowledge with anyone at the office who would listen.


I had the pleasure of being in Ottawa with Anne Murray earlier this week for her last event as part of her book tour in the Nation’s Capital and the place I call home. Over six hundred people came out to show their love for Canada’s first lady of song. She signed copies of her autobiography, All Of Me, and took pictures.


You’d never guess it was the last event of a fifteen city tour! That woman has more energy than I do!

From the event trail,
Jennifer

Posted by: Julie Forrest - Marketing Coordinator, Digital Specialist, Random House of Canada

Last night I had the pleasure of attending my first Chuck Palahniuk event, hosted by McNally Robinson Booksellers at the Isabel Bader Theatre. Chuck’s new book, Pygmy, went on sale last week and his devoted (I’m not using that term lightly) fans were eager to get their hands on signed copies and meet their idol in person. I arrived two hours before the start of the event, and the line was already long. As per Chuck’s request, some of the attendees arrived creatively attired as U.N. delegates (an homage to the climax of Pygmy).

When Chuck arrived, the crowd cheered, whistled and clapped. He stopped to chat with the faithful folks at the front of the line.

He signed a heck of a lot of books, and patiently posed with very happy devotees.

And then the fun really began. Over the course of the evening, Chuck entertained us with his hilarious retellings of “fairy tales” in Pygmy speak (read one of them here ); he was interrupted by a “sext” from Margaret Atwood (he assured the crowd that “boys only tease the writers they like”); and he whipped 200 inflatable penguins at us (plus one lone naked inflatable man). Seriously. The crowd lapped it up.

In conversation, Chuck talked about the origins of Pygmy’s hilarious pidgin English (it was modeled on his own bad German as well as his older Ukranian immigrant relatives who “will never see his work, so they won’t be hurt”). He explained that writing in Pygmy’s voice actually wasn’t that difficult, and he and his friends made a game out of talking in Pygmy speak. The quotes from fascist dictators peppered throughout the book also came from a challenge to his friends (wouldn’t it be fun to be Chuck Palahniuk’s pal?).

When asked about how he started writing, Chuck told us about the writing workshop he’s attended every Thursday night for 20 years. He said that even if he never sold a piece of work, he would still be writing just for the Thursday night parties. The man likes to have fun; hence the penguins, the stories, the humour. ‘Twas a fun night indeed, and I too am now a devoted disciple of the cult of Chuck.

Want in on the fun? Join us at www.OperatonH.com.

Posted by: Michael Schellenberg - Associate Publisher, Knopf Canada

You’d think that having a ticket to the 4th Annual Booklover’s Ball would be exciting enough, but it’s always fun to have a little suspense added to your day. A bout of extremely windy weather had us all wondering if Brad Martin, President and CEO of Random House, and co-chair of the night’s big event, was going to be stranded in New York City. The word was that all flights had been cancelled.

Well, Brad must have pull somewhere. The buzz at the Ball, held at the Royal York Hotel, was that he had in fact gotten on to a flight - so the evening was set to go off without a hitch!

CBC news anchor Diana Swain was the host, and it was nice to see my fellow ex-Winnipegger looking gorgeous and doing a great job handling the unruly crowd. Each table included a noted author, with a guest list that included Margaret Atwood, David Adams Richards, and Debbie Travis.

But the authors in attendance were there to work for their fancy dinners. As Diana pointed out, the author at each table was responsible for providing wit and candour for the evening. Upon hearing that, our entire table turned to MG Vassanji, our guest author - and he did exactly as he had been instructed, most amusingly trying to sort out what he would do with the MAC mascara that he had received in his gift bag.

After dinner, we settled in for a fashion show inspired by Harlequin books over the past fifty years. The decorating duo Colin and Justin were there, doing quite a number in Canadian kilts…

The Booklovers’ Ball is a fundraiser for the Toronto Public Library, the largest library system in the world. It has books in more languages than anywhere else in the world, but the statistic that I found most surprising is that 73 percent of Torontonians use the library. That is a lot of people reading a lot of books books and accessing the many other services, and it was a pleasure to witness all of the money being raised to ensure that the TPL continues to flourish.

Posted by: Maylin Scott - Assistant Manager, Library Sales & Academic

Last week at the Ontario Library Association’s Superconference, the Dewey Divas and the Dudes were thrilled to receive the OLA’s award for Leadership in Adult Readers’ Advisory. For six years we’ve been traveling around the province giving targeted book talks to staff at public libraries and school boards. We let them know about our favourite upcoming reads, forgotten gems and the new writers - especially Canadians - about to break out. We know how essential librarians are at spreading the word about books and there has been a ton of recent focus among them on developing readers’ advisory skills. So this award was truly an incredible honour, going as it did to a bunch of publishers’ sales reps instead of to a librarian. We accepted the award at the conference’s awards night dinner (buzzed with excitement and from a pretty large and tasty piece of chocolate cake) and thanked our library wholesalers for their support and the many libraries who have welcomed us so warmly over the years and passed on our recommendations to their patrons.

Here we all are on our big night. From left to right: Susan Wallace (Oxford University Press Canada), Cindy Weir (President of the OLA), Janet Murie (Scholastic Canada), Rosalyn Steele (H. B. Fenn & Company), Maylin Scott (Random House of Canada), David Macmillan (HarperCollins Canada), Saffron Beckwith (Kate Walker & Company), Sharron Smith (OLA Readers’ Advisory Committee), Eleanor Denny (Simon & Schuster Canada), Ann Ledden (McArthur & Company) and Lahring Tribe (Random House of Canada).

Posted by: Trena White - Associate Editor, McClelland & Stewart

Last night I attended a This Is Not a Reading Series event at the Gladstone Hotel with Bryan Prince, author of A Shadow on the Household: One Enslaved Family’s Incredible Struggle for Freedom, and interviewer Rachel Harry.

Prince has been studying slavery and the Underground Railroad for about thirty years, and his knowledge is vast. It was an important and timely conversation that looked at black history from the days of slavery up to Obama’s win.

The audience was intrigued to learn that Prince’s hometown, Buxton, started as 9,000 acres in southwestern Ontario dedicated to fugitive slaves and free black people. For people who had been so beaten down, the settlement offered a chance to raise families, own property, build community, and receive a high-level classical education at the local school. Prince is a farmer and is himself a descendant of slaves, as are many in the community. His book tells the story of the Weems family, who were torn apart in the mid-19th century when their slave master died, and then their long journey to reunite in freedom.

Posted by: Tan Light - Coordinator, Digital Sales & Marketing, Random House of Canada

Despite the freezing temperatures outside, the Gladstone Hotel was packed on Jan. 14 for the launch of Priscilla Uppal’s new novel, To Whom It May Concern. In this modern, multicultural re-telling of King Lear, Uppal explores the vulnerability and complexity of family and inheritance. Hosted by Pages Books and This Is Not a Reading Series, it was a most enjoyable evening for all.

The show started off with five of Priscila’s friends and colleagues discussing their own personal Shakespeare/King Lear stories. The line-up included our very own Andrew Pyper and Anthony De Sa, as well as playwright Linda Griffiths, Prof. Deanne Williams, and author Shyam Selvadurai. All five monologues were passionate, personal, and thoroughly enjoyable. Personally, I loved Anthony’s tale of teaching King Lear to his high school English class. He hooked them with ‘the angle’: King Lear was a pervert.

In the second part of the evening, Quill & Quire review editor Steven Beattie interviewed Priscila about To Whom It May Concern. She explained that her aim was to explore the tragic and comedic dimensions of failing to communicate, of keeping secrets, especially from family, and the consequences of our betrayals. Unlike characters in the play, Uppal and Beattie discussed how characters in her novel are not one-dimensionally ‘good’ or ‘evil’. Uppal’s characters are well-rounded and very human, each having their secrets and their redeeming qualities.

Despite the fact that this was “work” (I was hosting the Booklounge.ca VIP contest winners), I thoroughly enjoyed myself. To Whom It May Concern has been added to my nightstand’s ‘to be read’ pile.

Posted by: Tan Light - Coordinator, Digital Sales & Marketing, Random House of Canada

Do you have any book-related resolutions this year?

Myself, I plan to read more of what I already have at home, to listen to more non-fiction audiobooks instead of watching TV, and finally, to attend more book-related events.

Last year, I saw Giles Blunt at the Gladstone, I met Kelley Armstrong at a reading, attended a few champagne toasts and launch parties, and hit the Giller Light Bash with a few co-workers. This year, I want to attend at least two events per month. And I am starting with Priscila Uppal’s launch event, on January 13, at the Gladstone Hotel in Toronto.

If anyone out there shares my resolve to get out there and attend more events, here are a few tips for you:

1) Sign up for author alerts, so you know when your favourite authors have new books available.

2) Sign up for one of our Events Newsletters to know who is coming to your area. Make sure you register your postal code to be included in the VIP program! You’ll receive exclusive emails for your chance to win tickets, books and VIP treatment at selected events across the country! (Now THAT would make it easy to keep your resolution, wouldn’t it?)

3) Check with your local book store about events they are holding.

I will be sure to blog about the events I attend, so stay tuned!

Posted by: Heather Sanderson - Manager, Digital Sales and Business Development

I’ll admit it. I never really cared for hockey when I was growing up. I remember being angry that there was a Leafs game on at my sixteenth birthday party and that everyone wanted to watch it (except for me, that is). My disregard was so high that I can vividly remember the key moments when hockey slowly started to infiltrate my life - the most important being that the NHL playoffs coincided precisely with our scheduled exam timetable at University. I remember walking down the streets of Kingston, watching people pull couches and TVs out on their porches to sit back and watch the game together. What better way to spend time when trying to avoid studying? That’s when I first started to understand. I began to get the sense of community that this game instilled and wanted to be a part of it.

Once my younger brother started playing, I was a lost cause. I loved going to his games to watch him in net. I became a complete and utter hockey fan, watching Hockey Night in Canada and starting to become acquainted with, and to really love Don Cherry.

That’s why when I found out we were publishing Don Cherry’s Hockey Stories and Stuff I was instantly excited that not only would I get to learn more about him and to hear more of his stories in the book, but that I might get to meet him in person. And last night was that night.

I was fortunate enough to attend Don Cherry’s only book signing event this Fall where I met five lucky (and all very excited) BookLounge VIP event winners and their guests. Each pair not only won a copy of Don’s book but also the chance to meet him in person, to get their book signed, and to have their photo taken with him before the rest of the crowd had their chance. They were stoked and completely got into character. One, Matthew Smith, even dressed the part - in a suit worthy of appearing on Coaches Corner.

And other VIP winner brought his nephew from a town about an hour and a half away just for this. 10 year old Aidan Buckley could rhyme off the name of pretty much every hockey player and knew all of the stats (and was even interviewed by The Toronto Sun ). He was very excited to meet Don in person and told him that he’s been waiting 10 years for the Leafs to win the Stanley Cup.

The energy for the night only grew from there as over 200 people met Don Cherry and had their books signed. My favourite part was that a few kids from a local hockey team all came together, wearing their jerseys. The sparkle in their eyes and excitement was infectious. For me, it was fascinating to see two communities - hockey lovers and book lovers - come together. And appropriately so - Don Cherry is a fascinating story teller and with such a life, he has a lot of stories to tell. And what better way to tell us, then in his own words and straight from the heart in the aptly named Don Cherry’s Hockey Stories and Stuff.

Posted by: Tan Light - Coordinator, Digital Sales & Marketing, Random House of Canada

The biggest prize in Canadian literature, the Scotiabank Giller Prize, was awarded last night at the Four Seasons Hotel in Toronto. Our own Anthony De Sa was up for this prestigious award, valued this year at $50,000, for his story collection Barnacle Love. Not a sum to sneeze at in the book world! And while we, the average joes, could not attend the ceremony, a number of the young publishers made it to the Giller Light Bash, a party at which we watched the Gillers and ate great food, all in support of Frontier College.

Here in the Digital department, we thought that our new Twitter feed would be a great way to cover both parties. We had our Giller correspondent - Nicola Makoway, Anthony De Sa’s publicist - who tweeted for her first time to bring us coverage from the main event.

At the same time, we were tweeting from the floor of the Giller Light, snapping photos of authors and food, while waiting for the big announcement. You can check out our Twitter feed here to catch all the fun.

If you missed the announcement, the winner was Joseph Boyden for his sophomore novel, Through Black Spruce (Penguin, 2008). Congratulations to Joseph, and to the four shortlisted authors. I for one, can’t wait to do it all again next year!

Posted by: Jennifer Herman - National Accounts Marketing Manager

The Rt. Hon. Paul Martin was in Ottawa last Friday night to promote his new memoir, Hell or High Water: My Life in and out of Politics, to a crowd of over 300.

This was my third meeting with the former prime minister having had similar successful events in Toronto and Montreal. What continued to amaze me was his energy. He’s been steadily touring the country with a couple of weeks to go and yet each event that I have attended has been like a first for him. His energy is amazing and his passion for his beliefs inspiring. He signed multiple copies of Hell or High Water Friday night while catching up with old friends and answering questions from the public. All the while there was a smile on his face.

And I discovered I share a love of chocolate chip cookies with the former PM. He was even gracious enough to share one with me! Now if only he’d offered a glass of milk…

Posted by: Jessica Scott - Marketing Assistant, Digital Specialist, Random House of Canada

Last week I got to help out at a Debbie Travis event at Indigo Yonge and Eglinton. She was there as part of her cross country tour to support her new book Not Guilty: My Guide to Working Hard, Raising Kids and Laughing through the Chaos. I was there to look after our BookLounge VIP winners, making sure they had great seats, complimentary books and a special gift from Debbie.

She was hilarious and so down to earth. I already knew that she had a number of successful television decorating shows, plus a line of products at Canadian Tire but I had no idea the number of other shows she produces with her husband but doesn’t star in. Debbie mentioned that given the current economic situation she’ll be back on the air with a new DIY show. The whole in-store audience (me included) wanted to know more but it’s top secret until the summer.

Even though this new book is a departure from her regular area of expertise, it has some great stories in it, including her whirlwind romance of 2 weeks with her now husband of decades and how she balances a thriving business while parenting her two sons. Plus she shared with us a story that didn’t make the book, something about her sister in a cemetery, with a boy and a missing pair of knickers…

Posted by: Tan Light - Coordinator, Digital Sales & Marketing

Ask anyone who knows me, and they will tell you I love two things: Books and the supernatural. As a kid, the first two sections of the library I went to every weekend were Horror for fiction & Occult for non-fiction. Over the years, I have developed quite a collection of paranormal fiction, from Christopher Pike to Anne Rice and Kay Hooper. If you’ve been following our new RandomHouseCA twitter feed, then you know that my absolute favourite author is the wonderful Kelley Armstrong, author of the Women of the Otherworld Series and the new Darkest Powers Series for young adults.

In order to develp a plan for the release of her latest book, Living with the Dead, I have been living and breathing her books since late summer. I’ve had the opportunity to meet with the company big-wigs as the “resident Kelley Armstrong fan” (What a title!) and get a sneak peek at the books coming next year. I’ve even worked with Kelley via email to develop a Facebook application, (you can check it out here), a first for both of us.

But the cherry on the cake was finally meeting Kelley in person. She was here in Toronto last night for a signing at the Chapters Queensway. (By the way, they have signed copies of the whole series in stock right now!) It took me an hour by transit, but I hauled my first edition hardcover copy of Bitten, the first book in the Otherworld series, all the way down there to be signed. And to my delight, Kelley turned out to be one of the nicest people. We spent nearly an hour talking about writing (yes, I am an aspiring author myself) and what it’s like to write in the supernatural genre.

The whole evening confirmed that Kelley has rightly earned her place as my personal hero.

Posted by: David Ward - Production Manager, Random House of Canada

A caveat: I am a production manager, and thus work behind the scenes rather than up front like publicity and sales. I don’t always get to meet authors or illustrators. I am also an unabashed comic-book nerd.

This is why I let Dave Gibbons, author of Watching the Watchmen and artist of Watchmen, use my forehead as a canvas.

It isn’t every day that you can turn into Doctor Manhattan, especially by one of his creators. I figure I scored nerd-points in the hexadecimals after this little Sharpie-driven sketch.

This occurred on November 2 at a reception held in honour of Dave’s Toronto visit, and while it would have been wonderful to show it to the hundreds of fans who turned out for his signing earlier that day, sadly my Gibbons-original forehead was seen only by a few dozen people. Well, in the flesh, at any rate. Now I’m sharing it with you!

The signing and interview with Mark Askwith were terrific, and Dave gave everyone some tantalizing hints about the upcoming Watchmen film and an upcoming project with Frank Miller. He also described, in terrific detail, some of the creative process he, along with Alan Moore, used to create Watchmen.

Dave received much-deserved applause and cheers coming and going, and then sat down to sign close to 1,000 books, comics, and even pieces of original art. There was even one Rorschach, one of the major characters from the graphic novel.

I still feel I got one of the best signatures.

Posted by: Dinah Forbes - Executive Editor, McClelland & Stewart

On October 21, the coldest night of the fall so far, Peter Robinson’s fans and admirers bravely fought through a few tiny flakes of snow to pack into the Crush Wine Bar in downtown Toronto for a terrific birthday bash. It wasn’t the author’s birthday, and it wasn’t exactly the birthday of his hugely popular detective, DCI Alan Banks, but it was the twenty-first birthday of Banks’s first appearance in fiction. He is such a real character and has grown and changed so authentically over the course of the eighteen novels in which he features that it seemed odd he wasn’t there in person to blow out the candles on his chocolate birthday cake.

Spotted in the crowd were crime-fiction writers José Latour, Howard Shrier, and Rick Blechta; IFOA impresario Geoff Taylor; Martin Levin, books editor at The Globe and Mail, and several women I cannot name who would have loved to meet an off-duty Alan Banks in person. All of them were also there to celebrate the publication of All the Colours of Darkness, Peter’s latest Inspector Banks novel, and were delighted to meet the author, who spent much of the party in the corner, trying to avoid the gaze of an eight-foot tall poster of himself and autographing copies of the new novel for a line-up of fans.

Posted by: Randy Chan - Associate Marketing Director, Random House of Canada

On Oct. 7 I attended the kick-off event for the second annual Read for the Cure fundraising series at Steam Whistle Brewery, and I’m still buzzing from a magical evening. Read for the Cure is a non-profit, volunteer group of Canadian women raising funds for cancer research through campaigns involving books and reading. You can read more about their story here . The fundraising events, which are sponsored by Random House of Canada, raised over $20,000 in 2007! Tickets are just $75, and include the latest book by the three authors participating. Over 300 people came to see last night’s event with three extraordinary authors!

Elizabeth Hay, author of the Scotiabank Giller Prize-winning Late Nights on Air, spoke about her love of reading (lots of stories about War and Peace, her mother, and a chip truck driver!) — she is so eloquent I could have listened to her all night long. Miram Toews (The Flying Troutmans) spoke about the seeds of writing inspiration — well, specifically she told a hilarious story involving a pit bull she befriended in a desolate Mexican town while filming a movie about Mennonites. You really had to be there! And Jan Wong gave the background story behind her latest book, Beijing Confidential; a sad but faith-inducing story about finding a woman she had betrayed during the Cultural Revolution. You could hear a pin drop as her story reached its climax. Through it all, Carolyn Weaver emceed the affair and I am proud to say the evening raised over $20,000 for The Cancer Research Society.

There was another event on October 15th in Oakville where Vincent Lam, Rona Maynard and David Adams Richards took the stage.

I attend a lot of author events, but none are as meaningful as Read for the Cure events where readers — mostly book clubs — gather to celebrate writing and authors, while fundraising.

Posted by: Jessica Scott - Digital Marketing Assistant

Being new to Random House I have already been dazzled by the scope of books we produce and the quality of our authors, plus the people I work with have been awesome so I really didn’t think it could get any better. That is until they offered me movie passes. What? Seriously? The only thing I like at vaguely the same level as books is movies, so I eagerly said yes.

Last week I attended a sneak preview of the newest book into movie for Chuck Palahniuk. Choke, originally published in 2002, tells the story of Victor Mancini, a medical-school dropout, is an antihero for our deranged times. Needing to pay elder care for his mother, Victor has devised an ingenious scam: he pretends to choke on pieces of food while dining in upscale restaurants. He then allows himself to be “saved” by fellow patrons who, feeling responsible for Victor’s life, go on to send cheques to support him. When he’s not pulling this stunt, Victor cruises sexual addiction recovery workshops for action, visits his addled mom, and spends his days working at a colonial theme park.

Want to read an excerpt?

It was a fantastic movie and to be honest, like nothing I’ve ever seen before. I thought for sure I would hate Victor but Sam Rockwell did an amazing job at really making me feel sorry for him as well as try and understand the nature of sexual addiction. By far the most touching and dynamic performance was Anjelica Huston. She was superb as both the present day aging mother with dementia and in the flashbacks as a slightly-off, fugitive mother. There was a tangible conflict between Victor and his mother, a first class, love/hate relationship. The supporting cast rounded out the story line quite well and I feel like a number of them although for now are small name actors will have pretty impressive careers ahead of them. Fight Club already has a cult following and after seeing Choke I’m sure it will become another fan favourite. In fact it’s already got me thinking about what they would do for a film version of Chuck’s upcoming book, Pygmy. Hmmmm….

Posted by: Julie Forrest - Online Marketing Coordinator, Random House of Canada

One of my favourite perks of working in publishing is meeting my favourite authors in person, and getting my books signed. August has shaped up to be a banner month. First I had the pleasure of meeting the marvelous Andrew Davidson, author of The Gargoyle. Andrew Davidson is awesome. Soft-spoken and modest, he took his time with each and every person who waited in the long line for him to sign their books. He patiently posed for pics with gushing fans like me.

A week later I met Andrew Pyper, at the TINARS launch of The Killing Circle. It was a great event, and the Gladstone ballroom was packed. Andrew is a funny guy, and not afraid to speak his mind. In conversation with Nathan Whitlock, he talked about the satirical elements of the book (it has a lot of fun with the CanLit scene) and confessed they were a little more prevalent in the first version of the novel. He reminded us that plot is not a dirty word—a book is more entertaining when stuff actually happens!

Do attend a TINARS event some time—they are a fresh, fun alternative to traditional readings. See you there! I’m the geek standing in line with my book and my camera.

Posted by: Randy Chan - Associate Marketing Director, Random House of Canada Ltd

Runway models, a world-famous fashion journalist, oysters, and a custom cocktail called the Jeannetini—these are not elements you’d find at just any book launch. But to celebrate Jeanne Beker’s new book for young adults, Passion For Fashion: Careers in Style, the glamour dial was turned up several notches. The launch coincided with L’Oreal Fashion Week where Toronto’s Nathan Phillips Square—normally a bastion of double-breasted suits and pleated trousers—was transformed into a tent-covered fashion runway over-spilling with fashionistas. My Tundra Books colleagues and I enjoyed the Diesel Kids fashion show where adorable children and tweens strutted their stuff (it was rumoured that Canadian model Stacey McKenzie’s niece was among them). Jeanne Beker then came blazing onto the runway, dressed in black mini-skirt and jacket (looking identical to the new Bratz Fashion Reporter doll made in her likeness). You know her moment has come when, after more than twenty years as the face of Fashion Television, she is immortalized as a Bratz doll!

After a few gracious words (where she gave a nod to Tundra publisher Kathy Lowinger), Jeanne was whisked away to interviews with international media and I was left admiring the fashion do’s and don’ts (trust me, a beaver fur hat should never be paired with shorts). My colleagues and I then feasted on oysters at Rodney’s Oyster Bar before proceeding to the after-party. Jeanne brought her closest friends and family together (including her adorable and elegant mother, and her two daughters) at swanky Atelier on King Street West where we sipped on Jeannetinis (vodka, Cointreau, lemon and orange juice—delicious) and watched performances by young dancers and singers. But by 10:30pm, this decidedly unglamorous publishing type had had his share of hobnobbing and so I jumped into a taxi for bedtime. Three lasting impressions from my wonderful evening: 1) my wardrobe needs a re-vamp; 2) book launches are so much better when they feature swag bags and satay beef skewers; and 3) Jeanne Beker is truly an inspiration. Passion for fashion indeed!

Posted by: Heather Rosen - Booklounge VIP Member

I arrived extra-early for the Marie Phillips book launch, almost wanting to make up for the unexpected rescheduling of the event. As a veteran BookLounger, I received the warmest of greetings (as always) from Random House Canada and BookLounge staff as I flashed my copy of Gods Behaving Badly and signed the guestbook before entering The Room.

The Room, as I call it, is the elegant boardroom where many of the VIP events take place. The Room is a sacred place, a genteel literary grotto ensconced in a smallish office building not far from the cold glass-and-steel bank towers of Bay Street. The walls are lined with shelves proudly displaying dozens of Random House publishing successes. The soft lighting made the room all the more inviting. (Of course, the large table also played a key role, as Daniel et Daniel catering had brought in some exquisite hors d’oeuvres. The shrimp were to die for.)

While mingling and chatting with a few VIP guests, I suddenly caught sight of Marie Phillips just beyond the doorway; an interviewer and cameraman from Book Television were filming her for an upcoming television segment. As she made her way into The Room, her great pleasure at being celebrated with wine, Perrier, fine food and a throng of adoring fans was clearly palpable. After a glowing preamble by Anne Collins, VP, Publisher, Random House Canada, Marie Phillips spoke briefly, with charm and wit, about the exciting launch of the book in Canada. She said she wished they would hold similar receptions, replete with booze and food, in her native England. Afterwards, she signed my book, and I engaged her in a delightful but all too brief conversation. What a wonderful evening!

Posted by: Constance MacKenzie - Senior Marketing Director

The Book Lover’s Ball was held last week in Toronto and it was like an Oscar party for celebrity authors and Toronto’s social and corporate elite! In attendance were more than 60 celebrity authors, TV personalities and politicians, who came out to celebrate the night in black tie and flowing gowns all to raising money for The Toronto Public Library Foundation. We rubbed shoulders with David Miller, the Mayor of Toronto (who loved Jane’s beautiful jade gown), Oscar winning actor Graham Greene (who loved my shoes!), Mike Holmes of Holmes on Homes who graciously donned his trademark coveralls to strut his stuff on the catwalk for the book inspired fashion show, Andrew Pyper, who just finished writing his next book called The Killing Circle and it is rumoured to be AMAZING (really, we heard that repeated all night!). Then we found out that the author at our table, the award-winning mystery writer Peter Robinson, was presented with the Toronto Public Library Celebrates Reading Award! It truly was an unforgettable night of decadent food, glamorous fashions, cocktails and awards!

Constance MacKenzie (Senior Marketing Director) with Toronto Mayor David Miller and Jane Leaver (Sales Representative)

Constance with Oscar winning actor Graham Greene and Jane

Jane with Mike Holmes and Constance

Constance with Andrew Pyper and Jane

Ellen Seligman (Publisher, Fiction, & Senior Vice President, McClelland & Stewart), Maylin Scott (Assistant Manager, Library Sales & Academic), Peter Robinson the award-winning author of the Inspector Banks novels, Anne Stevens (National Library & Education Manager)

Posted by: Jennifer Herman - Marketing Manager, National Accounts

What do you get when you bring a former Prime Minister and Rick Mercer together?

Good laughs is what you get! I was fortunate enough to be in Ottawa the day Rick Mercer taped a segment with the Right Honorable Jean Chrétien that appeared on his show this past Tuesday. As a HUGE fan of the Rick Mercer Report it was a thrill to see how his skits for the show come together behind the scenes. I was at the bookstore in downtown Ottawa where they prepared the pump jack that the Prime Minister was to pull and the table where the “sign off” would occur. The two of them seemed to be having a great time putting these skits together. Of course regular folks in the store who had come to shop were quite surprised to see Mr. Chrétien and Mr. Mercer just “hanging out” at a bookstore. Many pictures were taken and more books signed. The end result for the television show was fabulous. And of course, no Random House authors were hurt in the making of this production!

Posted by: Lisa Charters - VP, Director Online Sales and Marketing

As many of you know, the Scotiabank Giller prize was awarded two days ago. The event was held at the Four Seasons hotel in Toronto and, if you’ve never seen the award show on TV, it is a truly glamourous evening with great people watching. It was particularly fun to see authors and editorial types all gussied up looking like movie stars. All evening there is an incredible excitement in the air. Everyone is thrilled to be part of a night where Canadian books and authors are celebrated. I had the pleasure of sitting with Alissa York whose book Effigy was one of the five shortlisted books. It is true that, while all the nominees would love to win, they all appeared to be genuinely happy to be nominated for this very prestigious award.

Here are a few pics that I took:

Giller winner Elizabeth Hay with Alice Munro and Jack Rabinovitch

Louise Dennys, Executive Publisher, Knopf Canada, Random House Canada, Vintage Canada with nominee Michael Ondaatje with his wife Linda Spalding

Nominee M.G. Vassanji with his wife Nurjehan, and Kristin Cochrane, Associate Publisher, Doubleday Canada

VP, Publisher, Random House Canada, Anne Collins with nominee Alissa York

(Also, in case you don’t know the story behind the award, here is the wonderful story of Doris Giller).

Posted by: Jennifer Herman - Marketing Manager, National Accounts

My husband has been eagerly awaiting the chance to meet one of his favorite culinary darlings—Nigella Lawson—since I told him about the possibility months ago. His dream came true last night at the Eaton Centre when he and 500 other adoring fans had the chance to meet her at Indigo where she signed copies of her latest book Nigella Express. Men and women, young and old alike came out in droves to share their love of the Domestic Goddess. And what a woman she is! She was amazingly upbeat and personable despite a long day of media interviews as she signed book after book and took picture after picture. Have I mentioned that she is more gorgeous in person than she is on the cover of her books or on her show? It was an absolute pleasure to have met her. And now that I’ve made hubby’s dream come true he can do the same for me by making me dinner! Any one for dessert?

Nigella ready to sign!

Posted by: Louisa Cohen - Publicity Intern, McClelland & Stewart

Last Thursday Dave Bidini’s new book, Around the World in 57 1/2 Gigs, launched at local music joint, The Paddock. As the new publicity intern, green to the world of publishing, I was excited to meet Dave Bidini, former member of The Rheostatics, and to be someone “behind the scenes.” Dave was scheduled to arrive, tape a television interview, perform a short reading, and play a solo gig.

Reading Bidini’s book he seemed down-to-earth, intelligent, and endearingly self-deprecating. To be honest, he sounded like the complete inverse of a rock musician. With Nirvana, The White Stripes, and Oasis as my rock models, I was unsure of what to expect.

Cool as the crisp air outside, Dave walked into the bar, hat on head and guitar in hand. “Sorry I’m late! Nice to meet you, I’m David.” A gentleman and a rock musician—the Gallagher brother’s could learn a thing or two.

Politely taking a seat on a barstool drinking a Perrier and lime, Dave got ready for the lights and camera…“Hi, Tom!” he said over his shoulder with a warm smile and familiar nod to the barman.

The evening went off without a hitch. Guests filtered in happy to be warm and with drink, and everyone was excited to greet Dave personally. After playing one song he switched to his writers hat—not literally—and the crowd remained in place. The Paddock went quiet and we all gathered in close as Dave read from his book. Listeners were eager and attentive—thoroughly enjoying his anecdotes from the road.

Afterward, it was all about good times in Queen West. A book launch became a night out at a great bar, to which Dave Bidini is no stranger. To tell his friends apart from his fans would have been an exercise in futility, as they were treated all the same by him.

Posted by: Martha Kanya-Forstner - Editorial Director, Doubleday Canada

Great news! Our sister company Doubleday US has bought CS Richardson’s novel, The Grand Tour of Ambrose Zephyr, and they plan to publish it in August 2007. The timing of our publication will not change but obviously the addition of such a high caliber partner is a great one.

There will be one significant change to the novel and that is its title. With a firm sense of what works best in their market Doubleday US has retitled the book The End of the Alphabet and we are going to follow suit - the novel being best served if it has the same title on both sides of the border. I should say that the novel will have a happy life beyond North America too as rights for it have already been sold in Italy and Germany, with a Spanish deal soon to follow. CS Richardson’s agent was thrilled with the attention the book got when she pitched it to international publishers at the Frankfurt Book Fair earlier this month. She has since had queries about the novel from territories as diverse as Israel and South Korea. So it seems that readers around the globe will be treated to this very special story.